Custom DB4 build

My temps are still perfect, even on hot summer days.

Yes I meant the HDPlex 8 heat pipe heat sink.

As for the shims, I used them behind the aluminum blocks, so the material is irrelevant, you just need to drill a hole for the screw to fit trough.
I first used pieces of thin wood for testing and that worked just fine. The order is as follows black standing mount =>shim=>aluminium block=>paste=>panel.
And I really would use paste, buy lots you will need it.

If you don't use the pcie slot, you could use that mobo with the lh6, just go to the opposite panel.
 
Raiju,

Thanks for documenting the process, I'm about to start something similar myself. In fact, I just received my DB4 today. A couple of questions, if I may:

What ohm resistor did you end up using on the power board to dim the LED?
What thickness did you choose for the shims? I have a feeling I'm going to have to buy one of those grab bags and try a few out.

Additional note for future inquiries: If you are interested in the HDPlex CPU cooler kit, simply email Larry at HDPlex and he'll send you one; I reached out a couple weeks ago and I believe mine cost $80 shipped.
 
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  • Hi Jericho

    I purchased the HDPlex 8 heat pipe CPU heat sink a few days ago so it hasn’t arrived yet. It cost $143 AU shipped.

    To Raiju: It’s a shame about the HDPlex heat sink having a crap solder job. I just purchased one, so I might be in the same boat. I thought HDPlex was a good company with good products.

    Thanks for letting me know I can use the motherboard I already have. You just saved me at least a couple of hundred bucks :)

    I’m not sure how putting shims on the backs of the heat sink mounts is of benefit. Is it to provide a better seal with the heat pipes and the sides of the case?
 
Chocolateburmese, I believe that is the point of the shims, yes.

Raiju: The real question is how did you remove the rear of the SF450 chassis from the plastic plug/power switch? I'm about to take a Dremel to it.
 
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Chocolateburmese, I believe that is the point of the shims, yes.

Raiju: The real question is how did you remove the rear of the SF450 chassis from the plastic plug/power switch? I'm about to take a Dremel to it.

If I can ask? How thick are the shims you used Raiju?
 
The resistor, I can't remember, been a long time. I remember doubling it so you would have to measure it.

Shims, thickness used 2mm.

The purpose of the shims, since I didn't use the pads that come with the case, is to ensure good contact with the panels.

Oh yeah the chassis, corsair really meant for it not the be taken apart. I used cutting pliers.

Good luck to all, I'll make sure to visit the site more frequently in case there are more questions.
 
I'll take you up on that, thank you... Is there a reason I couldn't stick a 13ga (2.2mm) copper shim between the aluminum sink and the outer plate? It seems to me that with some thermal epoxy holding it together, it could offer the benefit of a uniform flat conductive surface to interface with the panel. The price is greater than it would otherwise have to be, but if that isn't the primary consideration - is there a reason not to? Another thing I've been wondering is whether you made or obtained the power cable you used to bridge the case to the SF450. I was able to find one (1) last month on ebay. The length is a sub-optimal 12" - which has led to some placement compromises - but it works, if not inelegantly.

Oh, and bending these pipes is problematic, part of me wants to obtain a few straight pipes and bend them to suit. It is impressive you only cracked one.
 
Technically yes you could do that. But the placement of the shims to the panels would have to be very exact. Also note that by doing so you are introducing an extra layer to the setup and thermal epoxy will always be less conductive than paste. The heatpipes stick out just a little from the aluminum blocks, and with enough force since copper is a soft metal it will make good contact even on a surface that is not uniform.

I used the extra power cable that came with the ncase m1;)

As for bending, get a 6mm pipe bending tool. It will make your life a lot easier.
 
The resistor, I can't remember, been a long time. I remember doubling it so you would have to measure it.

Shims, thickness used 2mm.

The purpose of the shims, since I didn't use the pads that come with the case, is to ensure good contact with the panels.

Oh yeah the chassis, corsair really meant for it not the be taken apart. I used cutting pliers.

Good luck to all, I'll make sure to visit the site more frequently in case there are more questions.

Or you could just enable email notifications :)
 
Raiju:

Yeah, I already have a bender tool, but the radius is larger than I want, so, I said screw it and bought a few DIY sintered pipes and a bender spring... I've got the PC mocked up how I want it but there's no way bending what was provided will get me where I want to go. So, now I wait - again - until mid next week; at which time I'll be ready to finish assembly and test the initial configuration.

This is the slowest build I've ever done but I think it's going to be worth it - at least I'm hoping it will be. The amount I've spent on extraneous bits - at this point - has probably exceeded the initial cost of the case.

Sincerely though, way to be, responding to a necro and saving me time by sharing some of your drawn conclusions. I might have a couple more before all is said and done but I appreciate both your initial build walk-through and your availability since.
 
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Update: Life got in the way and it took me a minute to get back to the build. Started stress testing a couple hours ago. Ran through Prime95 and switched over to Aida64, my numbers look a fair bit higher than yours though. What are the specs of your build? I get the Gigabyte 1050ti but can you fill in the blanks for me?

Mine:

I7-8700
ROG H370-I
Corsair Vengence LPX 32GB
Samsung 970 Pro 512GB - NVMe
Samsung 970 Evo 1TB - NVMe
Corsair SF450 Platinum
Gigabyte 1050ti

Been going all out for over an hour now - CPU Package hasn't gone above 96°, Motherboard is at 80, as is the PCH. Currently also cooking the onboard graphics, which has topped out at around 94°.

It's hot, no doubt... Haven't throttled yet though.
 
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Began to experience throttling around an hour and forty five minutes in. I was running low on paste while installing the hdplex cpu cooler so I know for a fact there is a few degrees to be obtained there. I also did the first round with the lid tightened down. I have a feeling there is going to be a bit of tweaking to get this to work properly - I might look at an undervolt on the 8700.
 
Ish? I purchased 6mm straight heat pipes and bent them myself - I consumed most of the provided pipes, mostly practicing bends and such. I did use the aluminum blocks though; one large and one small for both the CPU and GPU.
 
Oh man this has me all sorts of nervous. Even a fan running at 500 RPM would be better than no fans right?
 
I am using a G4560

Unfortunately Intel tdp's are to be taken with a truckload of salt. Install hwinfo and see how much the proc really uses. My 2 cores @ 3.5 Gz use about 36W, you have 6 of them.

You can try disabling HT, should lower your temps some more. Maybe you can then bump the clocks a bit.
 
Also you can delid and replace the factory tim with Liquid Metal. Huge gains to be made there.
 
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Not sure I need to delid, it's stable... Did lose turbo though.

CPU Package consuming roughly 52W.
 
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